Full Metal Exorcist
by ShinichiKudoOwnsMySoul
Summary: Allen Walker has a secret. He's actually Edward Elric reincarnate. What happens when Alphonse finds him and the rest of the Black Order learn about his past? And what will the Millennium Earl do now that he knows this information? Pure cracky idea, may or may not continue. Allen is screwed. Being updated today. Allen is Ed, somewhat OOC Allen.
1. Edward or Allen Walker

This is a random-ass fic idea, so do not go begging for updates asap, I'm just going with the crack, okay! What if...Edward Elric was somehow/killed, idk yet, and was then...Allen Walker? These two are too fucking similar, okay-and I thought it would be purely hilarious to combine the two! So what if I have school assignments to do...hahaaaa...ha. Laughs bitterly. I have a freaking portfolio to do by DECEMBER! and I haven't even written a short story yet because I suck at original ideas.

Anywho, do not own any of these manic ideas! I just thought I need to write more funny crossovers and less serious ones. Since Allen and Ed are so fucking similar, this needs to be written, this demanding muse of mine ALSO WANTS ME TO UPDATE THE LIVING SPIRITS, SO I WILL, GAH. D grayman muses have come back! Allen is a little cinnamon roll-and he's too much like Kaneki...

Chapter One: In which Allen's Life becomes Ten Thousand Times more complicated than it had to be

* * *

Allen Walker was not an ordinary boy. He was not ordinary at all. For one thing, how many boys had white hair? For another, how many boys had weird arms that had innocence in them? How many of them could see dead people?

Okay, we're getting off-topic here. The thing is, Allen was not an ordinary boy, end-of-story.

You see, he also had another secret, something he did not tell many people-which was that he remembered memories of another life-one where he had been an alchemist named Edward Elric.

Shockingly, he was as short now as he had been then-a little taller, perhaps but it was still something that didn't change, he still somehow attracted dead people, and he still had a bad arm. Huh, wasn't that interesting. Allen remembered a lot of his life as Ed-but some parts were still kinda fuzzy.

For the most part, Allen tended to ignore his past life. He tried to, as much as possible.

Until his past life came knocking on his front door and attacked him. Literally.

He'd never thought it possible. That this could be happening. Yet, here it was.

It had all been a peaceful (no, more like chaotic day) at the order, with Komui doing his usual chaotic experiments-what was it with him and his bad luck with bosses, he thought to himself, as he pushed more food into his mouth. He still ate quite a lot. Some things never changed-whether he was an alchemist or exorcist, it really didn't matter.

Then, the terrified cries of the Gatekeeper could be heard. That only meant one thing; an intruder was at hand!

Allen got up, determined to use his innocence on the intruder, but Kanda decided to go first, like usual.

"You stay here, beansprout."

Didn't this feel familiar. If not irksome.

"Who are you calling short, Kanda?" He said. "Jerk."

He didn't lose his temper as much as he had in his past life. Allen had to cringe at how annoying he had been as Ed...not that he didn't miss his brother, he did. What did his brother look like again?

"Some weird...suit of armor...it's possessed, it tried to attack me!" The gate screamed.

"Is it an akuma of some sort?" Kanda inquired, but the gate was too paranoid to speak properly.

"Please! I'm not a bad guy of any kind! I just want to find my brother!" The suit of armor squealed, even as Kanda had his blade pointed at the thing.

"You can talk," Kanda said, "Wait, you have a brother? You're a suit of armor."

"I wasn't always like this, I swear!" The armor screeched. "Please, spare me, I just wanted to find my brother! I heard he's here..." He got down on his hands and knees. And started bawling.

Komui stared. "Is a suit of armor _crying?"_

"...Why is this happening?" Allen moaned, facepalming. Why now, of all times. This made life ten thousand times more awkward. "...I'm going down there, Komui-san." He said.

"Wait, Allen!" Komui said.

Allen paused, "That's my...uh, I'll explain it later."

Alphonse Elric had been heartbroken when his brother had been killed. How surprised he had been, then, when a young man told him his brother was alive; resurrected, but alive.

What if his brother was a homunculus? Still, the young armor was even more shocked when his brother's location pointed to...the Black Order? Wasn't that where exorcists were, the kinds of alchemists the military didn't even speak of?

Which was why he was on his hands and knees, begging for this crazy guy with the sword to leave him alone.

"...Are you sure you're _not_ an akuma?" The other said, pointing the blade dangerously close to his throat.

"Please..." Al whined.

"I think that's enough, Kanda." A sharp voice said from behind them, somewhat familiar, yet different.

Al looked up in time to see a short teenager standing there; with white hair in a familiar hairstyle, with blue eyes, and a weird-looking arm.

"What is it, beansprout?"

Allen walked towards Kanda. "Kanda," He said sharply, "That's not an innocence of any kind. That's a human soul in a suit of armor."

"I TOLD YOU IT WAS AN AKUMA!" The gate screamed from behind them.

"No, he's not," Allen said in annoyance.

"Well, then, beansprout, who the hell is he?"

Allen turned to look at Alphonse, who was terrified out of his wits.

"You're Alphonse, right?"

"Y-Yeah, but how do you know my name?" Al asked, looking the boy up and down.

Allen scratched his head. "Take off your head."

Al was puzzled. "No, get off me! I'm looking for my brother!"

"Find a garbage can," Kanda remarked in boredom.

Allen lifted Al's head off in time to show a blood seal. "Still where it used to be at! Isn't that right, Alphonse?" He said, smiling.

Alphonse blinked, and blinked again. "...Are you...?"

Allen turned to Komui, and Lenalee, who had joined them outside. "...May I introduce Alphonse Elric. My...uh, brother. Er, past brother."

"You have a brother, Allen?" Lenalee said.

Alphonse gasped. " _B-Brother? Is it you?"_

Allen paused, paling slightly. "...Y-Yes, it's me...A-Al...don't."

Alphonse grasped Allen in a death hug. "BROTHER, I WAS SO WORRIED ABOUT YOU! BUT, WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU?"

"Al...I need air," Allen gasped, pushing himself away.

"Why are you taller than you used to be? What happened to your hair, why is it white? Why are your eyes blue? What's with your automail?" Al threw a flurry of questions at the exorcist, who paled.

"...I was reborn," He said softly, smiling. "...And my hair and eyes are natural, Alphonse. This is an innocence. My arm was born like this."

Al stared at Allen. "...You've changed," He whined.

"So, beansprout, this guy is your brother?"

"In a past life, yes," Allen added.

"Ed-"

"Call me Allen, Alphonse. D-Don't tell me that guy, Mustang-san knows too?" He mumbled, paling slightly.

The wicked grin Alphonse shot him was enough to make Allen quiver.

"Is it just me, Brother, or are you different?" Alphonse asked. "How come you're not losing your temper so much?"

"No point in it," Allen said. "Wait a second-you didn't tell Winry, did you?"

"Winry will probably throw a wrench at you, brother." Al said, "I was so worried when you died."

"So basically, Allen-kun, you were an alchemist in your past life, but you died and were reincarnated, only remembering now." Komui deduced.

"Don't appear so suddenly!" Allen cried. "...Yes. I just wanted to keep it a secret."

"You know, brother, I miss your old hair color. You look like an old man..." Al whined.

"I'm not old!" Allen said, his face red.

"I'm Lenalee, nice to meet you, Alphonse. I didn't know Allen-kun even had a brother."

Allen stopped pouting and instead smiled and chattered away.

"...Uh, brother...what's with the mark on your face, under your eye?"

Allen froze. "What's _what?_ "

"That mark..." Al muttered.

"... _It's a mark you get when you try to bring someone back from the dead_." Allen said nervously.

 _"WHAT DID YOU DO, BROTHER_? WASN'T ONE TIME ENOUGH TO TELL YOU NEVER AGAIN!?"

Allen ran and hid behind Lenalee.

"It wasn't like that, Al! It was different, I swear!"

Al picked up his brother. "...Brother, I worried over you! What would teacher say...?"

Allen paled significantly. "I think I'm gonna go with General Cross...rather than her..." He shriveled into a chibi.

"Brother?" Al asked.

"I'm just fine! Call me Allen, please!" Allen said, smiling.

"Allen-niisama?" Al tried.

"That's better," Allen said.

"You still didn't explain to me why you tried to bring someone back from the dead again!"

Allen facepalmed. "This is gonna take a while."


	2. Rise of a hero

A/N:I hope you enjoyed this story. I love writing for you guys! This chapter should have a bit more insight on Allen's past-and Ed is so kickass here, I love it! Edllen/Edward/Allen has changed a lot, but one thing he will always be is terrifying to villains. No pushover Allen here. :D

Nea is shitting his pants after this chapter, lolz.

Anon, thank you soooooo much for reading it and liking it. Just for all you guys, I will update this! :D Some fun stuff is on the way, and some serious stuff as well.

" _You will never be entirely comfortable. This is the truth behind the champion - he is always fighting something. To do otherwise is to settle."_

― _Julien Smith, The Flinch_

* * *

Chapter 2 The Full Metal Exorcist Rises from the Ashes (in other words, Nea Walker better watch out)

Allen Walker was an unusual child.

No, he wasn't just unusual, he was _special_.

No one knew that better than Cross Marian, his exorcist teacher.

He had noticed how brilliant the boy was, in his intelligence. He was uncannily precocious, but...he was more troubled by the boy's nightmares.

He sat up. The boy was screaming again.

The child would talk in his sleep, in a language he could not understand. By the time he would wake up, the boy would deny having said anything at all. It was quite strange, he had to admit.

Suddenly, he heard the boy's screaming get louder.

He wondered what was going on.

"Allen!" He cried.

The child was lying on his bed, panting heavily, his blue-gray eyes wide open in what looked like fear as he glanced around, though for a moment he swore they looked _gold-_ but that was impossible.

"Marian-san?" He asked, in confusion, "What happened?"

"You were screaming in your sleep," He said to the white-haired boy.

The boy looked at him. "Yes," He muttered, "I was dreaming about Mana...and then Mana changed into something else...something more terrifying."

Marian wondered to himself, just what was more terrifying than an Akuma? He couldn't think of any other creature that was as insidious or terrifying.

"Get some rest," Was all he said to the white-haired teen before leaving. "Are you positive you're all right?" He asked.

"I can't say for certain that I'm all right, sir," He spoke up, "But, a long time ago, someone once told me that I've got a good pair of legs and I should get up and use them."

Marian cast the boy a strange look before he closed the door, leaving Allen alone with his thoughts.

Allen sat on the bed, his head propped in his hands.

"That nightmare...in that nightmare, Mana turned into a strange thing...with gleaming red eyes..and.." He muttered, "And I heard someone screaming a name I don't know."

He closed his eyes before opening them again. "The name in that dream was...Alphonse. But who is he?" He asked, pushing his white bangs back with his fingers.

His eyes widened as a sudden pang of pain hit his temples.

"Alphonse is...my brother?" Allen muttered, staring at nothing, holding his head as the memories flowed through him. Memories from another life that had suddenly been unleashed.

A girl named Nina...chimera. Tucker, Roy Mustang, Winry Rockbell, automail, the transmutation, alchemy, Rose...so many memories, and of course...his death.

A blade going right through him.

Him promising Alphonse he'd return, and then he'd died.

So much blood. So much blood.

Allen passed out from the trauma of those memories.

By the time he woke up, he remembered enough to help himself figure out what was going on.

Edward, or Allen, as he went by, now knew what had happened.

He had been _reincarnated, somehow._

As luck would have it, the new him had to have a fake arm, no parents, and had to have performed an undead experiment. It couldn't just happen once, he thought bitterly.

 _Of course he'd be targeted by undead creatures_. Of course.

This wasn't the first time it'd happened to him, so people were always surprised when they saw how calm Allen was in the face of such danger. Seeing as he was the former Full Metal Alchemist, such things were bound to happen to him.

Of course, he was still short.

"Tell me, Timcanpy," He said, "What do you think Al would think of me?"

Though Timcanpy didn't make a sound, Allen smiled.

"He'll probably think I'm insane, huh?" He said while stroking the object.

As much as he disliked Cross Marian's violent ways, he had to admit he missed the man, only a little bit.

 _"Allen, you must become taller to be a proper exorcist."_

 _"WHO ARE YOU CALLING SMALL?" He screamed._

 _"You are indeed too short."_

 _"I'm still gonna fight! Whatever would make you think otherwise?" Allen snapped._

Oh, an abusive teacher?

The similarities of this new life to his old were simply uncanny.

He remembered letting the question about alchemy slip.

 _"Komui-san, are there people called alchemists?"_

 _"Yes, there are. They live in a different country than we do, but we keep to ourselves, so we don't know much about them."_

 _Komui was a little surprised when there was a smile breaking out on Allen's face._

 _"Might I ask why you're smiling, Allen-kun?"_

 _"It's nothing." He said._

 _He wasn't in an entirely new world. It was just a different country._

* * *

From what he gathered of it all, alchemists and exorcists hated each other. Now here he was, a former alchemist, now an _exorcist_! Mustang would have a fit.

The white-haired boy wondered what Winry would have to say about him.

He probably didn't want to run into her for the rest of his life. He didn't want anything to happen to this innocence of his. She'd probably cut it up and sell pieces of it or something like that.

Or she would hit him on the head with a wrench and try to beat him up.

He shuddered.

"I don't understand, why these villains don't realize, they're not just messing with the Exorcist, they're messing with the _Full Metal Exorcis_ t." A smirk came on his face.

 _"I don't think we'll find that exorcist. He's way too short."_

 _The next thing they knew, they were sent flying by Allen's kick._

 _Allen smiled innocently before activating his innocence. "Care repeating that?"_

 _For some reason, he found he could terrify more people by smiling instead of getting mad._

Allen rather enjoyed that tactic, he had to say.

* * *

Alphonse Elric studied the boy before him as he sat there, talking and laughing with his friends.

He was glad his brother was back, but at the same time, this wasn't the boy he wanted.

His brother-or Allen Walker, as he went by now, was completely different. He wasn't sure how to react to the change in his brother's behavior. His brother was either more mature now or slightly more frightening.

How could he just smile all the time and not react?

Then there was his hair color, he never thought he'd ever see his brother with white hair, he was so used to him with blond hair. Then there was that scar. He couldn't believe his brother had been stupid enough to try that again.

He was still going to kick his brother's ass.

Third, he just didn't like how 'weird' his brother felt. His brother didn't feel entirely... _human,_ or sane anymore. And that bothered him.

He'd be damned if Al would let his brother, reincarnated or not, suffer alone.

That is where the two brothers found themselves, in the same room together.

While Allen was busy reading a book, Alphonse was trying to get an answer out of him.

"Brother?"

Allen was too busy reading. The only sound he got was the flip of a page.

"Brother! Ed-er, uh, Allen?" He said.

"Yeah?" Allen said, looking up, (damn, he would _never g_ et used to his brother having blue eyes, it was so odd, and looking so innocent, too, his brother was anything _but i_ nnocent.)

"Why are you so different?"

Allen sighed. "Like I said, reincarnation is different, Alphonse. It changes your personality."

"I hardly recognize you," Alphonse whined.

Allen smiled. "As a matter of fact, I didn't remember too much, up until I tried transmuting Mana and everything changed. I didn't want to believe it at first, thought it was all some lie that the Millennium Earl planted in my head. Maybe you're not used to seeing me without automail?"

"Yeah?"

"I prefer this innocence. At least it can grow back. I never have to worry about Winry tearing me apart again."

"Oh, I see," Al said, not quite understanding.

"Then...Komui-san's torture...is terrifying..." He whimpered, shrinking to the size of a chibi.

"Brother?"

Allen smiled.

"Say, brother, what will you do about the Colonel?"

Allen simply raised a brow. "What do you want me to do about him?"

"What if he wants you to return?"

"Then he can go screw himself, because I'm not returning." Allen said, with a smile that sent shudders down Al's spine. "I have my life now, and I'm not giving that up for anything."

The way in which his brother's red eye was glowing...that made Al scared.

"Relax, Al, I would never hurt you," He said, "Not unless you told me that I had to return."

"Brother...what's your relationship with that Kanda guy?"

Allen perked up. "Much the same as with the Colonel. We try to kill each other! It's great fun!"

Al shuddered. "You're more terrifying."

"I consider that a compliment, Al." Allen said, softly.

"Brother, you're hopeless." Al said.

"What?" Allen said, still smiling.

Who would have ever thought his brother could radiate killing intent without looking angry? It was creepy.

"I mean, just by how you act-smiling, saying you're not angry...when you are."

"I never said I was angry," Allen said, just by the way the smile was, Alphonse knew he was lying. Nothing was as terrifying as an angry Edward Elric.

"Are you sure you're not mad?"

Allen was silent for a few moments.

"If he says I have to be a soldier, then I'll just say one thing: no."

"But Brother-"

"If I'd dwelled on the past, that would make me how I used to be. I used to run away from being an alchemist. But now I can help people, it's my duty, that's what I wanna do. Sometimes, you have to lose the mantle of hero and look at it from another point of view. You can return to Amestris if you want. You're powerless against the Akuma. Too dangerous for you."

"What?"

"That poison...would go straight through you and kill you."

"P-Poison?" What sort of horrors had his brother gotten himself into? **_How_** could he just sit there and _smile_ about it? "Brother-"

"Alphonse, I don't know if you've realized it, but I've become Allen Walker. I'm not the brother you used to know anymore. Edward Elric is up **here** -" He said before pointing at his head, "But Allen Walker is down _here."_

He indicated his innocence.

"Now, Alphonse, you mind giving me a few minutes' peace?"

"Bro-"

"Now, Alphonse. There's something I need to take care of." His hard stare gazed into Alphonse's eyes until Al realized it was something serious, recognizing his brother's tone, even if his voice was different.

Al paused at the door. "Brother, your voice sounds more effeminate...have you noticed that?"

"WHAT?" Allen shrieked. "I do not sound like a girl!"

"Yes, you do," Alphonse said with a laugh before exiting, stifling his laughter.

Allen fumed.

Allen turned, in his mind.

"Now, who are you and why are you lurking in my mind?"

The figure backed away.

"How do you know that I'm here? This is my body, and you're taking up residence in it." The figure said icily.

Allen rolled his eyes. "You some kind of homunculus or akuma? Whatever you are, you're getting awfully careless. What's an akuma doing in me?"

"You're not human, you're an akuma," The figure said.

"Oh, boy," Allen said before holding his sides and laughing, "Wow, I'm an akuma! Watch me **_cry_** and _scream_. Oh, please, that's the stupidest joke I've ever heard. Even if it were true, I don't give a fuck."

The figure stepped backwards.

"Why of all people, did I choose the reincarnation of an alchemist?" He whispered.

"I thought I heard an insult about me," Allen said.

"You're Edward Elric!" He cried.

"Brilliant deduction," Allen said sarcastically.

"The Millennium Earl told us that Edward Elric was dead!" He said in panic.

"I'm sure he's been fighting all the other alchemists," Allen purred.

"I can't believe that he still lives. They swore they would rid the world of him, and yet here he is."

"As your savior or your destroyer?" Allen purred again, grinning smugly.

"I'm not going to tell you everything about me. However, because of the fact that you are here, you're helping eliminate my control over this body-"

"Which you won't have any control over." Allen said, smiling dangerously. "If you tell the Millennium Earl, I'll destroy this body myself."

Nea laughed. "You're insane, Allen Walker, no, should I call you, Edward Elric?"

"I've dealt with so many idiots like you, I doubt you'll be the last one." Allen said.

"We will talk again," Nea said before walking away.

"You may come back in, Al," Allen said. "It appears that I have someone living in my mind."

Now Alphonse started paying attention.

"This person believes my body is all theirs-"

Neah sighed, loudly.

Why had he chosen this child?

He had chosen this child, who seemed ordinary enough.

Then the boy started speaking of someone named Alphonse.

He had convinced himself it was nothing but a coincidence.

Then a suit of armor had shown up.

Neah Walker knew that he was mistaken when he thought this body would be easy to control.

How sad it was for him to learn that this supposed puppet of his was actually the Full Metal Alchemist himself, the one who sent fear into Homunculi alike.

"What bad luck," He muttered, "To run into the kid who scares even the Millennium Earl. I need to stop him from getting in our way, that little short brat."

Suddenly, Allen appeared in his mind.

"Did I hear the word short?"

"Yes, you're a short, pain in the ass."

 **"Who are you calling short?"**

The next thing Nea knew, he was running.

"Call me short again and you'll be dead." Allen said, smiling.

What had Nea Walker gotten himself into?

'Damn you, Mana,' Was all he could say.


	3. Chapter 3 Goodbye to Mustang's peace

_**A/N: Well, I figured I might as well update this because Ed's anger is perfect to channel out in the form of Edallen (if that term makes any sense.) lol. I finished my classes, but for some reason, my parent decides to bitch at me just for getting a B- or C+ on something. How the fuck is a B- or C+ a bad thing? For fuck's sake, an F is bad. I will never understand why parents obsess so much over treating their kids like ornaments for grades and never like people.**_

 _ **So why not channel that hatred out onto Ed? Who also has issues with parental figures? and everyone's favorite Flame Alchemist reappears. Also, I have only read 9 volumes of DGM but know some of the spoilers. So forgive me if I get some things wrong. And the living spirits will be updated soon, I swear. I'm getting around to it.**_

 _ **Now that I have no more classes, I can dedicate more time to fanfics.**_

 _ **And I've only watched FMA 2003, and some of Brotherhood. I'll try to read up on some of the other charas. Mun (tumblr term for the person behind a character) out.**_

 _ **Chapter 3 Reuniting with old friends (no, Colonel, I will not rejoin the military.)**_

* * *

Roy Mustang could safely say he was either very frustrated with the lack of news from Alphonse Elric regarding Full Metal or satisfied. Perhaps it was a mixture of both. While he respected Full Metal, he definitely did not miss his short rants (okay, maybe he did miss the kid a little bit).

But life in Central without Elric was very boring, he had to admit. Alphonse did too much sulking over his brother for a while, then moved on and tried to live his life. Now he was supposed to be returning from an unconfirmed source that claimed that Elric was still among the living. Which was impossible.

Mustang put his head in his hands, for god's sake, he'd seen the kid die before his very eyes! It was horrible the way Alphonse screamed as his brother bled out and died. That kid hadn't deserved to die at such a young age, but he supposed he ought to be used to it by now. In the military, people die. Ed had either acknowledged that a long time ago or else ignored it.

And in the end, Mustang felt responsible. He had signed the kid up for death and now he was gone. Everyone felt the weight of Ed's death. Everyone. The kid's girlfriend wouldn't stop crying and asking when Ed would come back, the little girl with the panda would constantly ask Alphonse if Big Brother Ed was coming back, and even Armstrong seemed to miss the boy's presence.

Eventually, they tried their best to move on. But he knew Alphonse had not moved on.

Somehow, Alphonse still believed that his brother could be alive once again.

What if the boy was a homunculus?

No, impossible. Alphonse would not resort to that, not after the last time.

Damn it, he was not worried about Full Metal if he was alive!

No, he was not worried, not at all.

 _Okay, maybe he was._

Just a little bit.

His door opened then as Alphonse Elric arrived. It had been several days since his departure.

"Hello, sir. I completed my mission."

"So, what did you find?" Mustang asked in impatience. The idea of finding Elric alive was impossible.

"I found my brother."

Mustang looked at him, really looked at him. "He died."

"He _did_ die." Alphonse said, which only confused Mustang more.

"Is he a homunculus?"

Alphonse's face paled considerably. "No! No, not quite like that! You see, he's alive and all, but he's different-"

"Different _how_?" Mustang said sharply.

At this point, Fuery, Havoc and Riza had paused to listen, curious about this revelation.

"He's um...been...reborn?"

"Reborn?" Mustang said, looking at Alphonse as if he had gone mad.

"Yes. I met him and he showed me proof. He did a short rant."

At this, Mustang gaped before clearing his throat. "I see. Then you should bring 'Edward' before us so I can determine if he actually is Full Metal."

"He is my brother! And, he refuses."

Mustang frowned. "Doesn't that increase the odds that he is merely an imposter-"

"HE IS MY BROTHER!" Al screamed, before calming. "He is different, but he's still my brother. Well, um, as a matter of fact..." He played with his fingers, looking quite nervous. "He's right out there...?"

"So you brought him with you, anyway?" Mustang questioned, not sure he bought this story at all.

"It's not like Edward's gonna come walking through that door and act like he never died to begin with." Havoc said, chuckling slightly and trying to ease the mood.

Alphonse scowled. "He's out there, you know. Um, Mustang sir, please don't try to make him angry. He's uh...scarier."

Mustang merely sighed. "Elric, come in."

* * *

The odds of Edward Elric being behind that door were very, very unlikely. Knowing Elric, if it were him he'd bang the door open, charge at him and call him Colonel Bastard any second now.

Instead, the door cracked open quietly and a new figure stepped in, followed by three others, a red-haired man, a dark-haired girl and a boy with long blue hair.

"So? Where's Full Metal?" Mustang asked, taking in the newcomers. They looked like...exorcists.

His eyes focused on the first figure, that of a teenage boy who appeared relatively innocuous. He had white hair...very odd hair color indeed, and silver eyes that were almost blue in color, with an odd scar running down half of his face. He wore the exorcist uniform and appeared to hold himself relatively calm.

He definitely gave off an innocent air. Full Metal _never_ tried to look innocent.

"He's here, you know!" Alphonse protested.

The white-haired young man smiled and stepped forward. "I think I can speak for myself." His voice was high but polite. Though almost...ominous? "It's been a long time, Mustang-san. Still being a bastard like usual?"

Roy's eyes traveled from Alphonse to the boy's friends and then back to the white-haired kid, who was still smiling like this was some sort of joke.

"You've gotta be kidding me, Alphonse. The only thing this kid has in common is that he's short. And if he were Elric, he'd be reacting to that comment."

The white-haired boy didn't even react, he just continued smiling.

"See? He's not Ed. Elric would react if I were to say he's a scrawny little pipsqueak who can't be seen without a microscope-"

A few seconds later, the white-haired kid had punched the wall, an ominous smile on his face.

"Care repeating that again, Mustang-san?"

 _"Elric?"_ He muttered, at a loss for words.

"Hi, everyone! It's been a while, Miss Riza, and Mister Havoc, Fuery!" He greeted, waving his innocence arm at them.

"My god, it really _is_ him." Havoc remarked.

"Miss Riza?"

A few seconds later, a gun shot rang out. Allen jumped to the side, barely missing it.

Another gunshot.

"Are you trying to kill Allen-kun?" Lenalee cried.

"Are you satisfied, Miss Riza?" Allen said, still in that patient tone of his.

Riza paused before she hugged Allen.

"Why didn't you tell us you were still alive?"

"Complications-you're squashing me-" Allen tried to say.

When she let him go, the rest of them also embraced him.

Roy paused, staring at Allen. "White hair doesn't suit you, Elric."

"Better than black any day." He said simply, still smiling.

'Why the fuck is Elric still smiling? Can he stop that, it's creeping me out!' Virtually everyone in the room thought except for Alphonse and Allen's friends.

"You know him, Allen-kun?" Lenalee asked.

"Yes, this is my old boss, Roy Mustang. These are Lenalee Lee, Lavi Bookman, and Yu Kanda." Allen introduced. "We're all exorcists."

"So, Elric, you were...reborn?" Mustang remarked.

"Yes." He said, smiling.

"So what's with your arm? It's not automail."

"I was born with it that way." He explained.

"And why are you smiling so much?" Mustang asked, very unnerved by Ed's new nature.

"It's much easier to take out your enemies that way." Was Allen's simple reply.

Ah, yes, he was Full Metal. That sarcasm couldn't be coming from anyone else.

"And who's this Allen person?" Havoc spoke up.

"My new name is Allen Walker. It's what I want to be called by." Allen explained.

"Brother, you've scared _everyone_ to death." Al said.

"So?" Allen said.

"Beansprout is _finally_ gaining a backbone." Was all Kanda said.

"Who are you calling a beansprout, you jerk?"

Another fight broke out between Kanda and Allen like usual.

"Ah, that's Edward, all right. Always sensitive about his height." Riza said.

"So, beansprout, you were an alchemist before and now you're an exorcist?"

"Yeah, so what?" Allen snapped.

"Nothing. I guess you've always been a short beansprout."

That did it.

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING A BEANSPROUT THAT'S SO SMALL THAT HE CAN ONLY BE SEEN BY A MAGNIFYING GLASS?"

Mustang covered his ears. "Oh no, Elric's started his short rant again."

Allen paused. "Still as arrogant as ever, Colonel Bastard. I haven't done that in forever, it felt good to let it out."

Kanda was still unimpressed. "Tch, still the same pipsqueak to me."

"Brother-" Al cautioned, but Allen just sighed.

"I'm calm now. What? Am I scary or something?"

The silence in the room answered his question.

"Well, El-er, Mr. Walker, I don't think we'll have to worry about your safety. I think your enemies are going to be even more terrified." Mustang said, "On the subject of business, you guys came to-"

"Discuss forging an alliance with you idiots on how to stop the Millennium Earl!" Yu Kanda said.

"Kanda, be nice," Lavi said. "Oh, that lady over there is cute, are you single?"

Riza fired again.

"Guess that means no," Lavi moaned.

"What a playboy." Lenalee grumbled.

"Idiot." Kanda said.

"Always flirting, huh?" Allen muttered.

"So, brother...you've got nightmarish abominations after you in this life, too?"

Allen smirked. "Yep. And I'm still going to kick their asses."

Roy Mustang had a headache. And it was all because of Elric. But a part of him was glad to see him again. Even if he was still a pain.

"Uh, brother? How are you going to tell Winry that you're alive?"

Allen paled. "Uh, I hadn't even thought of that. She'll probably kill me! On second thought, Al, can we leave the country?"

"Scared of a woman, beansprout?" Kanda said.

Within a few seconds, the catfight had begun again.

"It feels like home now." Havoc remarked.

"And Elric? Why is your voice so feminine now?" Roy remarked.

Allen punched him for that. "I do not sound like a girl!"

"Do so, Beansprout."

"You take that back!"


	4. Chapter 4 Winry visits

**A/N: Well, it's time for me to update this story. I hope you all enjoy it. I'm going to see NERVE in theaters, I heard it's really good. Anyhow, I also heard D gray man has a new anime coming out, I might want to continue reading the manga/and or watching the anime to catch up with it, as it is a good series.**

 **And yah, more of the enemies, like Road or whoever might figure out who Allen used to be. It's only a given.**

 **Chapter 4 Winry Shows up, Please don't Throw a Wrench in our plans**

* * *

If there was one thing that Alphonse Elric was certain of, he thought, as he glanced over at his brother, who was currently chatting away with his friends on what to do next with the military, it was that his brother was either ignoring the dangers of his situation or else he was plotting something.

He knew that look on his brother's face better than anyone. That knowing smile, that cocky smirk, it usually implied that Edward was going to do something, and knowing him, it would either be something bad, something illegal, or something reckless. Ed hated being told no.

It was ironic, Alphonse thought, that sometimes he felt like he was the more responsible of the two brothers. Ed always did what he wanted. He always had, even as a kid, and it seemed like that part of him didn't change, even as Allen Walker. Though he was more laid back, he knew the white-haired boy was plotting something, and he didn't like the idea of his brother sneaking off somewhere, alone, to go do something.

What was it with his brother and refusing help, anyway? Didn't he realize that made people worry more?

"Brother," Alphonse said, startling the teen out of his thoughts.

His blue orbs looked up at the suit of armor. "Yeah, Alphonse, what is it? Is this about Winry?"

"No, I think you're planning to do something again, and I don't like it."

"What are you talking about? I'm not scheming anything."

Definite lie.

"It's that tone of voice you're using, you're going to go off alone and do something reckless, aren't you?" He said, coming closer to Allen, who paled.

"What gave you that idea?" He said, but it was obvious he'd been caught and he was reacting.

"Do you think I'm stupid, brother? I've known you for two whole lifetimes! You still react the same way when you've been caught! Whatever it is you want to do, brother, let me in on it!" He demanded. He was tired of being left out.

"No, Alphonse. This is something my friends and I must do. You'd stand no chance against them. Stay here where you're safe." Allen commanded.

"No, what makes you think I'd let you go marching off to die all alone?" Alphonse said.

"Al, we're all at risk of dying every day. Just being an exorcist means we see death all the time." Allen said sharply.

"He's right. You should trust in Allen-kun, he's proven before that he knows what he's talking about." Lenalee encouraged. "Though he does tend to be headstrong..."

"And reckless." Lavi said.

"Hey, are you guys on my side or his!?" Allen protested.

They both laughed, leaving the white-haired teen steaming with irritation before it cleared.

"Look, Al, I've been through things you can't even imagine. It's stuff that haunts you. It makes my time as an alchemist seem like a bad joke. I don't want to lose you again. This is why I'm telling you, don't follow me, don't get the eye of the Akuma or the Millennium Earl, they will not rest until you're dead." Allen warned.

He had to flinch at the coldness in his brother's tone. "Okay, I'll stay put. But you have to promise me that you'll be careful! And don't die!" He whined.

"You know me! I died once, I'm _not_ gonna die again!" Allen said cheerfully.

"More importantly, Full Metal," Mustang said, "Shouldn't you have a _plan_ before you cheerfully charge out to your doom?"

"Who said I _didn't_ have a plan?" Allen said wickedly.

Everyone shuddered except for Riza and Mustang.

"I'm so used to your headstrong ideas that it doesn't matter." Roy said, "But I'm not letting you do things alone, Full Metal. Trust in us, please. We're here for you."

"I _do_ trust you guys." Allen said.

Riza walked over to him. "When we heard you were dead, we were devastated. What are we to do if we lose you again?"

At these words, Allen fell silent. "I guess we could sit back and think of a plan together..."

"That's more like it." Riza said, patting the teen on the head, who frowned.

"I'm not a little kid." He whined.

"You're acting like one now, Full Metal-er, Allen." Roy said.

 **"I'd prefer the term Allen now, Colonel.** " He said with a smirk.

Why was the kid so terrifying now?

He had to repress a brief shudder at the kid's terrifying aura.

What was with the kid now?

He seemed so unfazed by anything they threw at him. Just what kind of hell had he endured alone for so long to make him this way?

"Brother, by the way..." Alphonse began, but wasn't quite sure how to say it.

"Yeah, what is it?"

"Winry is coming over soon to see us."

The pale look on Allen's face told him everything he needed to know.

"I'm going home! Lenalee, Lavi, let's get out of here!"

But Alphonse blocked the door, a wicked smile on his face. "No, brother, you're going to stay here and deal with her. She thought you were dead. She deserves to know the truth."

"Fine," Allen said, looking sullen.

Now that was more like his brother.

* * *

"I think she's already arrived," Mustang said, pointing to the door where a tall, blond-haired young woman stood, having grown up in the years since Ed had died.

"Alphonse, there you are!" She exclaimed, coming towards the suit of armor. "Colonel, it's good to see you, and Hawkeye," She said, before her eyes traveled over towards Allen and his friends.

"These are the exorcists from the foreign country we asked to assist us, Miss Rockbell." Roy said.

"I'm Lenalee Lee, pleasure to meet you," Lenalee said, shaking Winry's hand.

It looked like they were going to be good friends.

"I'm Lavi Bookman, but you can call me Lavi! You're really sexy! Can you go out with me?"

Lavi had a wrench flung at his head as a response.

"Stop flirting!" Lenalee scolded.

"I like them feisty," Lavi moaned.

"Honestly!" Winry huffed, before her eyes fell on Allen, who was looking busy, wrapped up in his book, ignoring her. "And you are...?" She asked.

Alphonse nudged his brother to get him to respond.

Allen looked up at Winry and smiled. "Hello there, Miss Rockbell! It's nice to meet you!"

Winry's eyes fell on Allen's arm. "Is that some kind of automail?" She asked, an excited glint filling her eyes.

"No, it's natural. My arm was always this way." He said, smiling nervously. "My name is-"

"So where's Ed?" Winry asked Alphonse.

No one said a word.

Alphonse said, "Well, uh, this might sound hard to believe, but he's my brother."

Winry took one look at the white-haired, blue-eyed kid and laughed. "He doesn't look anything like him. Is this some big joke?"

"He did a short rant," Mustang said.

'Damn you, Colonel, for betraying me!' Allen screamed in his mind.

"It's been a long time, hasn't it, Winry?" He muttered, looking very pale.

"E-Ed?" She whispered, unable to believe it.

Allen hesitated. "Y-Yeah?" He whispered. "But I uh, go by another name now."

Tears spilled out of her eyes as she tackled the boy in a hug. "Ed, I missed you! How could you die like that? I was so worried! And...what did you do to yourself? Your hair is white! What did you do to your automail!" She cried, looking at him in shock.

"U-Uh, I was reborn, I cannot control that stuff." He whispered, still smiling.

Winry grabbed her wrench and threw it at his head.

Instinctively, Allen's innocence activated and caught the wrench in his arm.

"What kind of automail is that?" Winry cried in amazement. "I've gotta see how it works! Let me dissect it!"

"No, Winry! You can't. This is innocence, it's a part of my body, I need it!" Allen said, as his arm returned to normal.

"Ed-"

"Call me Allen Walker now. I don't really go by that name anymore." Allen said serenely.

"Allen? Okay, then...Allen...is it just me or are you taller? And why is your voice so feminine?" Winry asked.

"Winry, don't talk about that." He whined. "It's not important, what's important is I got to see you again."

"You really have changed." She said, looking at him in disbelief. "So, are you telling your teacher about it?"

Allen's pale face told her the answer.

"N-No, no plans on visiting her any time soon!"

"Definitely not!" Alphonse yelped.

"Is this teacher really that terrifying, or is she super hot?" Lavi cried.

"She's married," Winry said flatly, "And she would throw you into the wall!"

"Why are all the women in my life violent?" Lavi moaned.

"Because you're a pervert." Lenalee huffed.


	5. Chapter 5 Putting the pieces together

A/N: Here we are with the next chapter! Izumii will show up soon and now we see more of young Allen with Cross. Seeing as it's been a while since I last updated, nearly half a year, I apologize. I need to read more DGM, my knowledge only spans as far as volume 9+.

And Allen did not automatically accept his dreams, nor his memories. This chapter shows that he is more complex than meets the eye. It also takes place in the past for the beginning half and then later back in the present. Sorry for the confusion.

Chapter 5 Putting the pieces back together

* * *

Allen woke with a start, on his bed. He noticed his master was gone, and wondered where he was, until he remembered-oh, he was probably out gambling somewhere again, and once again, he'd left the room a mess for Allen to pick up.

He sighed, scratching his white hair with his good hand before sitting up. "Izumi would kick his ass." He muttered. Who was Izumi again?

He was just now getting accustomed to the idea that he had memories from another life. It was odd, but he was getting used to it. To be honest, it always explained why he'd felt so out of place, compared to other people.

He'd noticed Cross giving him an odd look when he'd asked about alchemy before. Apparently, alchemists and exorcists didn't interact with each other. Allen found himself wondering what an alchemist was, or why that term seemed so familiar to him, but, with these memories coming back to him, he had to wince at how bleak and depressing they were, from what he could tell.

He saw a blond boy with his brother and their close bond with each other. Hell, he'd dreamed about a suit of armor screaming his name and then woken up with tears running down his face, with no idea why. He didn't even have a brother.

Why should memories of a past life bother him?

Allen just sighed before yawning and stretching, as he walked over to his mirror and stared at his reflection.

Apparently, he had been short in his past life, and that was still the same, though he was a bit taller, but not by much.

He guessed the biggest change of all was to his arm, which before had been sheer metal and was now a living weapon. He supposed it made sense as to why he felt so natural and accustomed about having such a thing.

Though the only thing that was weird is that he didn't have a metal leg to go with it. At first, he was disbelieving of the idea of there being such technology. Apparently, exorcists had not developed that technology yet.

He stared at his eyes in the mirror. Apparently, they had been gold in a past life, and now they were blue-grey, the same color as his old brother's, apparently. He would have liked if he could have the same eye color as his past life, oh well.

His hair was still in the same hairstyle as it had always been, always messy, always growing, but there were times where he missed how he used to have a ponytail. Oh well. The only thing that had been strange was how his hair was now white. He felt like an old man.

And to be honest, having had memories of another life, he could safely say he _felt_ like an old man. I mean, sure, he still dealt with dead people who were reanimated corpses. In his other life, he had experienced dead people, but now they were much worse. At least the homunculi hadn't been using human souls for their nefarious purposes.

He'd seen the worst of humanity. Edward Elric was a pessimist. An utter pessimist. And it was ironic that Allen's viewpoint was so different from how it had been before. In spite of everything that had happened to him, he remained positive, and he'd found how refreshing that view was for him.

It made things much easier to deal with, rather than just sulking.

If he had to say one thing about his past life, it was that he had been...a jerk. A major jerk.

He just had to look back at some of his actions, and facepalm.

Okay, did he really believe he was someone in a past life? Well, seeing as how he had such vivid memories, and these feelings felt real, he had to concede that yes, it was real.

But would anyone believe him, probably not?

After all, if it stood to reason that he was logical in a past life, he'd probably be logical in this life, too. However, the one way in that he differed from his other self was definitely his willingness to believe in people-just in general, how he treated people now. He found that when he was nice to people, they tended to have a better perception of you.

If people saw you as a nice person, they would trust you, and uh, Allen sometimes found that easy to manipulate. He looked like an innocent kid, he could get away with stuff. But, truth be told, he was glad he'd figured that out now, because it always made sense with how he was so curious about the world, always asking questions, and always being strangely perceptive for his age.

Then he chuckled as he recalled how he'd pleaded for Mana to help him find his brother that he knew he had, and they had to go looking for him.

Mana had just told him that he had no brother.

 _"Mana, can we go find my brother?" Little Allen asked._

 _Mana stared at him in confusion. "You don't have a brother, Allen."_

 _"Yeah, I do. He's somewhere else, we have to find him!"_

 _"Is your brother an imaginary friend?" Mana said, a smile coming on his face._

 _Allen frowned. "Well, I guess so. I have dreams about a brother, but I can't find him anywhere."_

 _"Maybe this brother is..like your conscience? Do you ever hear a voice in your head?"_

 _Allen nodded._

 _"Your conscience is like your guide."_

 _"So it's like an older brother?" Allen said excitedly._

 _"You could say that." Mana said approvingly._

He'd always been an odd child, he supposed. But now what was he supposd to do with all this knowledge now that he knew about it?

Allen just frowned.

"The more I think about it, the more of a headache I get." He complained. "It's a lot better if I just relax."

He frowned as he flopped back onto his bed, staring up at the ceiling.

What would the others' reactions even be to this?

Apparently, the person who was his past brother would not even believe him, since Edward had been mean and blunt. He didn't think Alphonse could believe that his brother could turn over a new leaf and start being nice.

The girl who threw wrenches at people...Allen had to shudder, apparently wouldn't believe him.

It would be best, he decided, to keep this in the past where it belonged and just concentrate on the here and now.

All of that changed, however, when Cross had discovered that Allen had a sudden fear of dogs, especially whenever they came up to him and started sniffing him, suddenly he'd heard a voice in his head say, play with me. Suddenly, dogs were terrifying, he didn't know why.

And that annoyed him.

* * *

He drifted back off to sleep, and as he did, he found himself being approached by the same blond kid he'd seen before.

Allen looked up at him.

" _So you're the new me, huh?" The blond said, looking him up and down, "Can't say I'm impressed, but can't say I'm disappointed, either."_

 _"What do you mean?" Allen said, confused._

 _"Well, you haven't remembered everything yet, right?" The boy asked, "But I'm glad you're accepting it at least-you seem to be pretty open-minded. A bit too nice."_

 _"Hey, there's nothing wrong with being nice." Allen muttered._

 _"And you're still sarcastic, got a lot of brains, though that's to be expected, you are me. Still short, I take it? Not even a reincarnation could make me taller, still it seems like you are a lot taller than me by a couple inches. How tall are you?"_

 _"5'6." Allen said simply._

 _Ed jumped back. "Whoa, you did get a bit taller than me, but only by six inches."_

 _"You seem to have a Napoleon complex," Allen retorted._

 _"Oh shut up," Ed said, "I mean, you're like me, but in other ways, you're different."_

 _"Are you even gonna let me get a word in?" Allen muttered, "I don't really know how I should feel about all of them, because they're your friends, not mine."_

 _Edward looked at him. "Well, in a way, you're right, but those feelings are partially yours as well, because you are me. We're in this together, after all. Still, I must say I was pretty disappointed when I saw you do that stuff to your dad figure."_

 _"I should have known better." Allen muttered._

 _"Well, sometimes those things happen." Ed pointed out, "And you were just a child with no distinct memories of it. So you can't be blamed. But sometimes you've gotta be harsh."_

 _"I don't like being harsh." Allen replied, "It does no good. The world needs more kindness."_

 _"There are those out there who aren't kind." Ed said, "What will you do if you meet those people?"_

 _"Fight, I guess." Allen said._

 _"Take care of my brother for me, will you? I'm not sure how he's doing without me, but I know that he needs me." Ed said softly._

 _"I really don't know how to feel about all of this," Allen admitted, looking from his arm to Edward. "Sometimes, I wish I could just-"_

 _"Forget? Well, it's better to remember than to forget. I mean, you've got a purpose, a thing you have to do, right? That arm of yours is supposed to help you protect people, right?" Ed pointed to his innocence._

 _Allen nodded. "Right."_

 _"So then, you should do just that and don't sweat the details. Everything should be fine." Ed said encouragingly._

 _Allen smiled. "You know, you're not a bad guy, despite being so short." He teased._

 _"Who are you calling-oh, wait, I shouldn't be picking a fight with myself." Ed said._

 _"Got the temper, all right." Allen said, hesitating before asking his next question, "What were your parents like?"_

 _So Ed started telling him about his parents and his life._

 _"What about your parents?" Ed asked curiously, eying his other self as he fidgeted slightly. It was like his other self had taken on Alphonse's kindness and shyness. It was just, well...weird to see his reincarnation be so quiet and shy. Ed was nothing close to that, Ed was pretty outgoing._

 _"They abandoned me for having this arm." He muttered, not meeting his gaze._

 _"Man, what dicks!" Ed snapped, "I hate parents that just abandon their kids like that, it's stupid!"_

 _Allen jumped._

 _"Sorry, did I scare you? And I really can't stand the fact that your master leaves you alone like this all the time and beats you up? Seriously, what an asshole, even Colonel Bastard wasn't this bad!"_

 _Allen winced at the use of the curse words before asking, "And Colonel Bastard is?"_

 _"Oh, you haven't remembered him yet. Oh, well. You can remember it on your own, right?"_

 _"I suppose so," Allen stammered._

 _"Have more confidence in yourself. You can do it if you just try. By the way, I do find it ironic that a version of me would be praying to God."_

 _"God is real," Allen said._

 _Edward made a noise akin to that of a laugh mixed with a cough. "Oh, all right, then, you believe what you want. Take care."_

And suddenly, Allen was alone again, realizing he had been dreaming.

He frowned at the mess that awaited him.

"I suppose I have no choice but to clean this up." He said.

* * *

The first thought Allen had had upon meeting Yu Kanda was, man, this dude's like my old self.

Hotheaded, impetuous, arrogant, a jerk, he could easily see why people hadn't liked him at first or thought of him as a horrible person, because while Ed had cared for people, he wasn't very good at communicating and was an honest to god cynic and really was too blunt.

"Beansprout, you work too hard." Kanda said to him one day, "It's like you're overcompensating for something, it's like there's something you're trying to hide."

Allen turned back to face him with a mysterious smile on his face. "What would you do if I was?"

Yu Kanda blinked. "It's not like you to be so secretive. You should try to trust in your team mates."

"You're right, of course." Allen said.

"Quit smiling like that, beansprout. It's creepy."

"Jerk!" Allen snapped.

"There you go again with your temper." Kanda growled.

Allen just smiled and waved goodbye sarcastically.

"What a jerk," Allen muttered. Still, he continued to smile.

If it pissed Kanda off, then good.

The guy's attitude could use some adjusting, that was for sure.

Being nice had its advantages as well. His peers respected him and even Road had become a little nicer to him.

* * *

Road was bored as she licked her lollipop. There was no sign of that white-haired kid she liked playing around with so much.

"I'm bored," She voiced to Tyki, who sighed.

"I have a delicious piece of information. I heard that annoying exorcist we follow has a connection with a famous alchemist who is now missing."

The Millennium Earl looked startled. "Really?"

"Yes," Tyki said, "It's quite interesting when you think about it."

"That sounds like a rumor. Alchemists and exorcists don't have anything to do with each other. Pah, I'll believe it when I see it." The Earl said, shifting in his chair.

"All right, then." Tyki said.

"Ooh, an alchemist, huh? I'll have to test these alchemists to mess with them, and maybe that alchemist will appear. And I'll get to see cute little Allen again."

She didn't care.

Alchemist or not, exorcist or not, Allen was going to be hers.

* * *

"Allen..."

"Brother..."

"Brother!"

Blue eyes flew open as Allen found himself staring into the face of the metal suit of armor.

"Oh, Alphonse-san," He muttered, "How was your sleep?"

"I don't sleep," Al explained, "I just enter a state of hibernation, in a sense. You were muttering stuff in your sleep. Are you all right, brother?"

"I'm just fine!" Allen chirped, but Alphonse picked him up.

"Hey, put me down!"

"You're acting stupid. I know you better than anyone, even if you are someone else now. I mean, we're still brothers even if we're not blood-related anymore, right?"

"Uh, yeah, now please put me down. I've worked out a lot, so I'm tired."

"Oh, sorry," Al said, putting him down and stepping away, a blush on his suit. "You're just so different now, you know."

"I'm still the same person, just a bit different. I realized that being nice helps, and people respond better to you if you're optimistic and kind."

"Edward was always really hard on himself and cynical. It's good to see that you're trying to care for yourself, but don't hide things from those around you. You're doing that same thing again."

"I know," Allen muttered.

"Running away from things."

"I know."

"And that's not right by itself!"

"I know, you don't have to remind me. Just like usual, brother is the harshest critic!" He whined.

"Brothers are supposed to be like that." Alphonse laughed.

"Yo, Full Metal, how was your sleep?" Mustang said, apparently having gotten there just now.

"Just fine." Allen said.

Lenalee and Lavi were already awake.

"There you are, Allen-kun!" Lenalee said, coming over and hugging him.

"Oh, thanks, Lenalee. I'm glad you guys waited for me." Allen said.

"Somehow, it's creepy seeing him smile." Mustang snarked.

"Did you say something, Mustang-san?" Allen said, flashing him a smile.

Mustang had to resist the urge to shudder.

When the hell did the kid become so creepy? It must be some intimidation tactic.

Something about the kid now was... _wrong, somehow._ Warped, even. What had the kid gone through to make him such a survivor? What horrors had he undergone, enough to change his whole personality and make him so unnaturally nice? Knowing him, he must be doing it as a survival tactic or some kind of mask. This was Edward he was talking about, dammit and the fact that he couldn't read the kid like he used to ticked him off.

It was just frustrating.

"Were you worried about me?" Allen said, looking up at him with sparkles surrounding him. It was a terrifying sight. Why did the kid look so goddamned innocent now? Edward had never tried to act innocent for one second. It was like looking at a totally different person-well, he sort of was, but Mustang kind of missed the old Edward. Not this terrifyingly nice one.

The day Edward used polite honorifics for him was the day the world ended.

"Just worried that you wouldn't do your job, kid." Mustang said.

"You don't control me anymore." Allen said smugly.

"He has a point, you know." Lavi said, "Exorcists don't bow to alchemists."

"But we have to get along, that's what Niisan said to do!" Lenalee scolded.

Lavi sighed. "Here I was expecting I could get some beautiful women to go out with me. Say, what about that chick who threw stuff at you, Allen?"

"I think she went back home." Allen said.

"Yes, she did. I convinced her it wasn't safe for her here." Alphonse explained. "But, uh, there's bad news."

"Um, what's that?" Allen asked, tilting his head.

"Teacher somehow knows."

"That person?" Allen said, paling slightly. "Oh, gosh."

* * *

"You're kidding me, right?" Izumi said, dropping her plate on the ground and staring at Winry. "Edward is _alive?_ "

"Well, uh," Winry muttered, "He's been reborn, as hard as that is to believe, he's still the same, but uh, different like uh..."

"What is he doing? Where is he?" Izumi demanded.

"Um, right now, he's busy preparing for something." Winry confessed.

"I must see him at once, but I suppose I'll give him space for now. I mean, if Alphonse is with him, then he must be fine."

"And also, he's an exorcist now."

Izumi nearly choked on her food. "What? Alchemists and exorcists don't get along!"

"But he was getting along fine with them. Even if he's changed on the outside, he's still the same Ed we know on the inside, right?"

"Do you still love him?" Izumi asked.

Winry blushed. "Of course. He's just so different now that he's like a different person. He's a lot nicer than he used to be. Not quite sure why, but I suppose living a different life and stuff made him feel like he had to be."

"A nice Edward? Never imagined I'd see the day." Izumi snarked.

"People change," Said her husband, "I'm looking forward to seeing if he's gotten taller."

"He's still short, but he's gotten taller by a few inches!" Winry replied. "He still doesn't like milk, and also he's not a blond."

Izumi stared at her in surprise. "You're kidding, right?"

When Winry shook her head no, she sighed.

"Still, a nice Edward, I wonder what his life is like."

"I didn't really ask." Winry said, "Al told me to go home as soon as possible, just for my safety, but it still kinda annoys me a little that I couldn't help."

* * *

"Brother, do you still love Winry?" Al asked.

"Of course I do. But, she's like my friend to me. And I can't let her get involved in this fight, it's too difficult for her."

"Aha, I see, you like that girl, right?" Al said before gesturing to Lenalee.

"Ack, it's not like that!" Allen sputtered, his face red.

"Allen-kun, is something wrong?" Lenalee asked.

"I sense love in the air. Allen-kun's becoming a man." Lavi chirped.

"What are you talking about? It's not like that at all, we're just good friends!" But her face was red as well.

"I sense Full Metal has a girlfriend." Mustang teased.

"Be quiet, Mustang-san." Allen said, radiating a terrifying aura like always.

"Why does everyone pick on me?" Roy moaned.

"Because you can be a jerk." Alphonse admitted.

"Riza?"

"I'm not even taking sides. But Allen, you need to learn to be nicer. You need to trust in us. I know that you're not fine."

"I am fine!" Allen chirped.

"Look, when you died, we were all very sad, and now that you've found us, you're not willing to tell us anything. Don't you know how that makes us feel?"

Allen felt a pang of guilt hit him. "Um, probably pretty bad." Allen muttered.

"Yes, so we want you to let us in like you used to. Can you do that?" Riza begged.

"I can try," Allen said.

"That's all I needed to know." Riza said cheerfully, "By the way, the dog is doing well."

"You have a dog?" Allen said, shaking.

"So Mister Walker does have a fear." Mustang teased.

"Don't you dare, Colonel!" Alphonse cried, "Brother, why do you hate dogs?"

"I don't know, I just don't like them."

"Oh, it's from that." Alphonse said, his face suddenly darkening.

"From what?" Allen asked.

"You don't remember? Seriously? About Nin-"

"What are you talking about? I have no idea what you mean." Allen said sincerely.

"Brother, could it be that you don't remember _absolutely_ everything?" Al said, looking at him in shock.

"Well, uh, I don't know, I just...never liked dogs. Is that a problem?" Allen asked.

"No, it's nothing. Never mind." Alphonse said.

Allen frowned. Was his brother keeping things from him?

If so, what was it that was so important that he would just clam up like that?

Even so, the idea of him not remembering whatever this thing was that was so important scared him.

If Alphonse was hiding something from him, he would find out what that thing was.


End file.
